GHOST TOAST – Out Of This World

Inverse 2017

It took the Debrecen team three albums to live up to their name, an alloy of all things ethereal and exhilarating, albeit “Out Of This World” ventures beyond alienation suggested by its title. Instrumental at the core, some of the record’s pieces hold snippets of dialogue from a various movies, creating a sci-fi panorama, yet a hint at female incantation in the entrancing “Alia” gives way to a full-blown lament on the rippling “Kaia” until the love duet of “Ishvara” spreads its enchanted wings and anchors the music to the earth.

There’s immersive depth to the likes of “Ka Mai” where insistent, heavy riffs dissolve into transparent, if still tight, strum, before solidifying their tension, and while the resulting tapestry hides orchestral intent, it’s on “Gordius” that the band’s classical bent is revealed, once János Pusker’s cello and piano have entered the picture which, unexpectedly becomes possessed with an electronica-tinctured groove. These seemingly incongruous sounds may render “Minotaur” alluring rather than menacing but, given symphonic power, the many tempo shifts behind “The Dragon’s Tail” welcome an Oriental tune and baroque streak in their vertigo-inducing midst.

With “Last Man” reeling in metal, and mental, loneliness, it’s hard to see the entire perspective behind this album, but the many intertwined layers of “Pawn Of Fate” – the record’s shortest cut – is a perfect summary of the picture, and a way out of what seems to be a labyrinthine trip into one’s mind. That’s a trip worth taking time and again; it’s that riveting.